25 June, 2019
Rewind four years ago. I was living in Austin, Texas and was a heartbroken 27-year-old. I had a friend in town from Monterrey and he was getting ready to drive through the night, over the border, back home. I had just renewed my passport and joining him seemed like an obvious decision. I was going to Monterrey.
I messaged my boss in the early hours to let her know I wouldn't be in work for the next few days. Easy. We spent the next seven hours driving through the dark and, the next morning, I walked around the pastel-painted Barrio Antiguo at sunrise.
Monterrey isn't your typical Mexican travel destination. Most people head for the beaches of Tulum or the culturally rich destinations of Oaxaca or Mexico City. Yet for me this northeastern city has a certain charm. It has carne asadas and vaquero culture. In the dry desert heat, there's plenty of beer to keep you hydrated. Pockets of great art and a greater food scene are surrounded by some of the most unique, jagged mountains I have seen in my life.
I would spend the next few years taking as many opportunities as I could to visit my friends in Monterrey, exploring, getting to know the city and the mountains and, of course, taking photos. This series of images are taken from my many visits over the last four years.
